U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano stressed security along U.S. border communities while in El Paso on Thursday.

But she also said that increased security should not come at the expense of trade and travel.

During her visit, Napolitano first met with area business and political leaders at the Bridge of the Americas to talk about commerce. She then participated in a news conference joined by El Paso Mayor John Cook, Undersecretary of Commerce for International Trade Francisco Sanchez, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Alan Bersin, and Arizona mayors Arturo Garino of Nogales and Al Krieger of Yuma.

"We are dedicated in this administration to security and safety," Napolitano said. "Security and safety don't have to come at the expenses of trade and travel."

Napolitano said the Obama administration is working to improve technology, personnel and infrastructure along the border to help decrease wait times and increase trade opportunities

So far, she said, about 1,700 Mexican private-sector partners are enrolled in the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism trusted-shipper program. Enrollment in the program allows a company's trucks to travel into the U.S. with minimal inspection at the ports of entry.

She also said that 250 new customs agents are being assigned to various ports along the border. She has also requested 300 additional officers in the 2012 fiscal year budget.

Advertisement

Many of those officers will help with southbound vehicle inspections, Napolitano said.

Bersin said officials are making a push for pedestrians to sign up for the Secure Electronic Network for Travelers' Rapid Inspection, or SENTRI. This program expedites border crossings for those who enroll.

Bersin reiterated that despite fears of an epidemic of drug-related spillover violence into the U.S., the border is "more secure than it's ever been."

"That doesn't mean we don't have our challenges," he said. "We want to make this border economically competitive and economically prosperous."

Napolitano said the value of imports at the U.S. Customs and Border Protection's El Paso Field Office have increased 40 percent from fiscal year 2009 to fiscal year 2010. There has also been a 22 percent increase in the total value of imports crossing the Southwest border into the United States, she said.

Napolitano's visit was met with criticism from state Republicans in Austin who questioned whether she was adequately addressing border security. As she was touring the ports of entry in El Paso, some Texas lawmakers were calling on her to visit the state Capitol, nearly 600 miles away, to talk about border security.

State Sen. Tommy Williams, R-The Woodlands, announced a resolution calling on the Texas congressional delegation to provide the Legislature a cost analysis of the money needed to fully enforce immigration laws in Texas and the status of the funding.

That resolution also calls for the House speaker and the lieutenant governor to send a bipartisan delegation to Washington, D.C., to meet with the executive branch about border security.

During his news conference, Williams took a few jabs at the federal government. He mentioned the bullets that hit El Paso's City Hall last year, which were thought to have come from a shootout in Juárez.

"Napolitano is visiting there today," Williams said. "I hope she sees some of these bullet holes as I did when I was in El Paso."

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said he welcomes Napolitano's commitment to deploying more resources to law enforcement along the border.

"When the nation's top intelligence official indicates our southern border poses a direct national security threat, it's time for action. We need to explore what can be done in the immediate future to ensure that every mile of the border is secure," Cornyn said in a written statement.

Adriana M. Chávez may be reached at achavez@elpasotimes.com; 546-6117.

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — The death of actor Leonard Nimoy last week has inspired people to post photos on social media of marked-up five-dollar Canadian banknotes that show former prime minister Wilfrid Laurier transformed to resemble Spock, Nimoy's famous "Star Trek" character. Full Story